Posted on 08/14/2006 10:23:33 AM PDT by markomalley
The Aug. 10 arrests in Britain of 24 men suspected of plotting to use liquid explosives to blow up jetliners have set off a global panic about what should and shouldn't be allowed on planes. In this climate, the duty-free industry finds itself in an unenviable position: It sells flammable fluids in airports.
The $26 billion duty-free industry has branched out beyond alcohol, tobacco, and fragrances to sell international travelers everything from clothing to electronics. Still, alcohol and perfume remain mainstays, accounting for more than half of sales in some areas, according to Michael Payne, executive director of the International Association of Airport Duty Free Stores (IAADFS).
Already, Payne says, a few international outlets have adjusted their policies, and it has hit them in the pocketbook. Argentina and Brazil have suspended sales of spirits and scents to U.S.-bound passengers and to those flying on U.S.-flagged planes.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
That is the new flight traveler problem.
You are not allowed to lock your bags, and you are not allowed to just carry all your valuables right now. if you DO lock your bag, they will cut your locks.
YET COMMON SENSE is not allowed to enter into any security screening.
and once i get through everything, we end up with the screaming baby behind us.
I'm sure it is, but I seriously doubt that anyone there voices concern about whether some of the airport's security measures are putting a damper on the sales volume at the duty-free shops.
As for the woman I mentioned in my subsequent post, who just couldn't bring herself to give up her tube of lipstick in her favorite shade, despite the super-high security threat which required it, I can't quite picture a gate agent at any Israeli airport allowing him/herself to be drawn in to the poor woman's plight and finally agreeing to go to the trouble of personally mailing it to her, in order to get her to shut up and board the plane.
The average American urgently needs to learn some things that the average Israeli already knows.
The average American security apparatus needs to learn some things the average Israeli security apparatus already know.
PROFILE!!!!!!!
If you're going to fly often, you have a profile and a security card that is EXTREMELY hard to duplicate that gives your vitals, your picture, your fingerprints, etc.
Until we realize that some people travel and are NOT a threat we will continue to treat everyone as if they are a terrorist, including your average 87 year old nun.
The problem is that being stuck at an airport with several hours to kill is literally a maddening experience. The shopping malls and restaurants are a response to this. They give people something to do and they make money at the same time. Asking people to layover for four hours with nothing to distract them but some Tom Clancy novel is a recipe for trouble.
They call it Freedom and Liberty.
That is about to change.
Unfortunately, I have to agree with you on that.
Particularly since Clancy seems either to have retired or to have come down with a terminal case of writer's block.
Given the security cameras pointed at airport gates, and the likelihood of Ms. My-Lipstick-Is-My-Whole-World calling up Delta and threatening to sue if her lipstick didn't arrive, I expect the agent actually mailed the lipstick.
LOL. One can only hope. (Not a fan of his later work).
People should bring more stimulating reading along. And conversing with other travellers is also an option. Laptops and Blackberry-type devices provide even more options. It's pretty pathetic when people just have to compulsively shop or eat to keep their flimsy brains from imploding.
You can only read or stare at a screen so much. If you have a four hour layover and then a five hour flight it's nice to be able to save the reading for the plane. Plus, it's healthy to walk around the terminal, not just sit since sitting is what you'll be doing on the plane. Some airports are almost fun to be stuck in, others are just torture.
Perhaps the airports should provide free treadmills, exercise bikes, weights, etc. (and showers). Airports would also be an ideal venue for rotating museum exhibits. Line the walls with secure glass-windowed display cases, and invite the thousands of little special interest museums around the country to participate through some central coordinating office that keeps the displays rotating. It is possible to walk without shopping or stopping in at restaurants to eat. McDonald's-type play areas for kids would be good too.
Some airports do have gyms, although they're not free. Anything is better than staring at concrete walls for hours at a time. Do you fly much?
How about free internet access...with half the machines set to FreeRepublic.com only?
Yeah, buying Spanish olive oil at the Madrid airport I'm sure just got a lot tougher. Great stuff, makes for a nice gift.
Where does it say in the bill of rights that you have a god-given right to travel by air?
There was an article I wanted to post, but it was an AP article. It was about all the items that have been confiscated from airports. A PA airport has been auctioning items on EBay. Here in Phoenix any liquids that were brand new are being given to a local homeless shelter. The news reporters crowed about it, as if passengers should be excited about their items going to such a good cause. Especially the person who apparently had to give up their $34 hand cream. Sure, they aren't being thrown away, but come on. What happens if some terrorist make explosive clothing. Everyone will be required to board naked and everyone eill be happy that their good clothes are being donated to a good cause?
It's just below the clause where you have a God-given right to an abortion and just above the one about the right to privacy.
No, thankfully I don't fly much. About once a year I have to fly somewhere on business, and I can't remember the last time I flew for any other reason. But I'm pretty good at amusing myself in boring places. I have a longish train commute every weekend (real home is in a Philly suburb, job and weekday apartment are in Manhattan), and train schedules and delays resulting in missed connections make for a fair amount of time spent in train stations. In the Trenton station, one's options are 1) read, 2) catch up on e-mail via Blackberry, 3) make conversation with other travellers, or 4) stare at a wall. I do a mixture of 1-3.
Not a good idea. Too many people would miss their flights :-)
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